Research

Research Interests

The group has a wide range of research interests.  Their primary foci are (1) understanding the fundamental phenomena that govern advanced combustion processes and (2) developing innovative solutions and techniques to solve the remaining challenges associated with advanced combustion modes. The group also has interest in investigating the use of alternative fuels including natural gas and renewable bio-fuels and their interactions with conventional and advanced combustion modes.  Finally, the team has research interests in modeling advanced combustion engines in various vehicle architectures to both quantify the fuel economy benefits of these next generation engine technologies and to investigate potential synergies between the combustion mode and the powertrain architecture.

Large eddy simulations of a scaled 1 kW wind turbine shroud flow field (m/sec).

Active Projects

The group has one active project  funded by a federal agency, described below:

Naphthenic Biofuel-Diesel Blend for Optimizing Mixing Controlled Compression Ignition Combustion

  • Funding Agency: Department of Energy (DOE) Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO)
  • PI: Prof. Dimitris Assanis, Stony Brook University
  • Co-PIs: Dr. Ofei Mante & Dr. David Dayton, RTI International
  • Funding: $1.96M (Government share: $1.49M + Cost Share: $476K)
  • Duration: Feb 2019 – Dec 2022
  • Description: Develop and characterize the combustion and emissions performance of a new bio-fuel.

Naphthenic-rich bio-blendstock oil produced by collaborators RTI International for ASTM D975 testing.


 

Advanced Dual Fuel Combustion of Zero-Carbon and Traditional Logistics Fuels

  • Funding Agency: Office of Naval Research (ONR)
  • Funding: $550 K
  • PIs: Prof. Dimitris Assanis, Stony Brook University & Noah Van Dam, University of Massachusetts-Lowell
  • Co-PIs: Prof. J. Hunter Mack, UML & Prof. Juan Pablo Trelles, UML
  • Duration: Dec 2021 – Dec 2023
  • Description: Enabling advanced combustion of ammonia/hydrogen blends.

 

Large-Eddy Simulations for Superior, Computationally Optimized Oxidation and Particle Management (LESS CO2 & PM)

  • Funding Agency: SBU/BNL Seed Grant
  • Funding: $40 K
  • PIs: Prof. Dimitris Assanis, Stony Brook University & Ms. Rebecca Trojanowski, Brookhaven National Laboratory
  • Co-PIs: Prof. Jon Longtin, SBU & Dr. Thomas Butcher, BNL
  • Duration: Jul 2021 – Dec 2022
  • Description: Developing a computational model & framework for solid biomass combustion

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Advanced Low-Temperature Gasoline Combustion using Partial Fuel Stratification

  • PIs: Prof. Dimitris Assanis, Stony Brook University & Dr. Dario Pintor Lopez, Sandia National Laboratories
  • Co-PIs: Dr. John Dec, formerly at Sandia National Laboratory
  • Sponsor: SBU Institute for Advanced Computational Science & CONVERGE CFD

Video (click me!) of Partial Fuel Stratification, a low-temperature gasoline advanced combustion mode

Collaborator Dr. Pintor with his MD gasoline engine at Sandia National Laboratories.

 

 

 

 

Past Projects

The group has completed four (4) projects funded by federal and state agencies, described below:

Hybrid Electrochemistry-Advanced Combustion for High Efficiency Distributed Power

  • Funding Agency: Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E)
  • Funding: $2.325 M
  • Primary Recipient: Stony Brook University
  • Subcontract: Nexceris, Czero, Brookhaven National Laboratory
  • Stony Brook PI: Sotirios Mamalis
  • Duration: 2 years

Single Fuel Reactivity Controlled Compression Ignition Combustion Enabled by Onboard Fuel Reformation

    • Funding Agency: Department of Energy (DOE) Vehicle Technologies Office (VTO)
    • Funding: $1,128,000
    • Primary Recipient: Stony Brook University
    • Subcontract: Innoveering, LLC and City College of New York
    • Stony Brook PI: Benjamin Lawler
    • Start Date: October 2015
    • Duration: 3 years
  • PhD Students Supported: 3 students
  • Description: Reactivity Controlled Compression Ignition (RCCI) is an advanced combustion concept that offers high efficiency and low emissions with good controllability through the use of two distinct fuels. However, RCCI is limited in its commercial viability due to the added cost and complexity of the two required fuel systems. To resolve this drawback and enable the commercialization of RCCI, the proposed innovation would use a single fuel with an onboard fuel reformer to create the necessary separation in fuel reactivity. In this concept, the fuel from the tank would be directed to the engine unaltered, while a separate branch of the fuel stream would be processed with the onboard fuel reformer to produce reformate: a fuel mixture of H2, CO, and partially reacted hydrocarbon species whose properties are different from the original parent fuel. The less reactive fuel will be port fuel injected and the higher reactivity fuel will be direct injected (DI). If successful, the proposed use of an onboard fuel reformer to create the necessary fuel reactivity separation from a single fuel would allow the future commercialization of RCCI and the realization of the previously reported benefits of RCCI.  Over the duration of the project, candidate parent fuels will be reformed and the reformate’s composition and effective autoignition properties will be determined.  From this, the team will be able to determine which parent fuel and reformate combination holds the most promise.  This(ese) pair(s) will be tested in a single-cylinder engine to determine if RCCI combustion can be enabled through this concept.  The research plan includes both experimental testing and CFD and system-level modeling.

Micro Internal Combustion Engine for Transformational Residential Applications

  • Funding Agency: Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E)
  • Funding: $2,935,000
  • Primary Recipient: Aerodyne Research Inc.
  • Sub-recipient: Stony Brook University
  • Stony Brook PI: Sotirios Mamalis
  • Start Date: November 2015
  • Duration: 3 years
  • PhD Students Supported: 3 students
  • Description: Currently, electricity in the United States is produced from a variety of sources with the largest three being coal, natural gas, and nuclear (in that order). These three energy sources accounted for 86% of the electricity generation in the U.S. in 2015.  The national average efficiency for electricity generation was 33% in 2015, which means 67% of the raw energy is wasted to heat.  This is the largest source of wasted energy in the U.S. compared to all other sectors (Residential, Commercial, Industrial, and Transportation).  This project aims to improve the efficiency of U.S. electricity generation by using the rejected heat from electricity generation rather than wasting it.  To do this, this project is investigating a small, highly efficient engine to produce electricity in the basement of residences.  This engine would produce electricity for the house, while the heat rejected from combustion is used to heat the house in cold climates and in the winter months.  This is called Combined Heat and Power (CHP) or Cogeneration and the idea is not necessarily new.  However, there are no high efficiency commercial units that are offered at the residential level.  For this application, the team is researching a free-piston linear alternator operating on HCCI combustion to provide high efficiency electrical generation.

High Performance Computing New York (HPC-NY)

  • Funding Agency: Empire State Development – Division of Science, Technology and Innovation (NYSTAR)
  • Funding: $600,000
  • Primary Recipient: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI)
  • Subcontract: Stony Brook University
  • Stony Brook PI: Robert Harrison
  • Start Date: October 2014
  • Duration: 3 years + 3 years
  • PhD Students Supported: 1 student
  • Description: The New York State High Performance Computing Consortium (HPC-NY) is a three-year NYSTAR funded program that brings together computing expertise from the IACS at Stony Brook University, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, the Center for Computational Research at SUNY Buffalo, the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, and Marist College. The mission of the consortium is to engage New York State companies on the use of advanced computing and data analytics for improving productivity, developing new products, and fostering innovation to provide them with a competitive advantage in growing their businesses. A core HPC-NY team has been established at Stony Brook University including the PI Dr. Robert Harrison, the Program Director Dr. Jason Trelewicz, and five additional faculty members in the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences. The high-performance computational resources and data capabilities of IACS and Brookhaven National Laboratory are being leveraged by the team to address problem-solving and design needs communicated by their industrial partners.

 Labelled CAD Model of an Engine Used for Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) Modeling and Simulation

 

cfd_si_combsution_1

Cut-Plane at Top Dead Center (TDC) Showing Flame Propagation in Lean SI Combustion

 

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